eNuri Original Aqeedah Collection:

[Nur]

Dear Somalaonline Nomads

 

eNuri is pleased to present scattered topics on Aqeedah issues that I have written over the years as a response to queries by some browsers of Somaliaonline Islam page and other sites, the collection is timeless, and the topics are red hot! enjoy.

 

What is Aqeedah?

 

 

In the Arabic Language, Aqeedah comes from the root Masdar (CAQADA) meaning to tie a KNOT, in the legal perspective it means BELIEF, because in a sense we tie two entities together, we tie an abstract PRINCIPLE, with REALITY and then STORE that CAQEEDAH to be manifest in REALITY. This leads us to another pivotal term, which is the first topic of our Aqeedah Webinar, this term is called iimaan, but then, what does Imaan mean?

 

 

What does iimmaan mean anyway?

 

 

This question is up to you all to figure out, but let us attempt to understand the true meaning of iimaan as the SALAF before us did, the first generation understood it, so try and figure out the following hint to decipher the true meaning of iimaan.

 

 

 

HINTS:

 

For those of you who use computers, or understand the basic make up of computers, a computer is a creature that executes commands that serve a purpose, so, it has in its memory a SOFTWARE that encodes logical steps for the operation and execution of commands, these commands are two type:

 

1. Embedded commands ( Permanent Encoded Commands to GUIDE the computer to perform an operation)

 

2. Temporary User Commands ( configurable commands, with limited validity)

 

For the computer to perform well, it needs some sort of control in its input, for example, the input for commands must be a certain format, and from reliable authorized system users. Therefore, if the computer is performing within tolerances and according to manufacturers specs without any disruption from unauthorized users, InshaAllah it will deliver its objective, we call this system a SECURE system. On the other hand, if the system can be hacked by unauthorized users to perform tasks that are not in line with its manufacturers specifications, then that system is NOT SECURE system.

 

Likewise, iimaan comes from the root word amana, meaning to secure something, so in that context, out minds or hearts secure a set of information, and a set of orders.

 

There are two types of information and orders:

 

Permanent Set

 

1. Permanent Information scripted on our soul, its known as Fitrah, The Worship of Allah alone

 

2. Permanent orders, which are necessary for the body to function like instincts of eating, breathing heartbeat breast sucking of child etc.

 

Temporal Set

 

1. Information sent down by Prophets

2. Orders sent down by Prophets

 

 

Like computers rolling out of assembly line, programmed with all necessary programs to function as desired, we humans are also born with what is known as INSTINCT, or in Arabic FITRA, we are all born while submitting to Allah figuratively in the fetus position, weak and helpless. We are born Muslims by default (FITRAH). Its later in life when our files are corrupted with pirated Satanic software that takes control of our lives away from its original design specifications. That is when we have no iimaan, because our lives has been tampered with, thus not secure. A Person possessed by the devil executes the wrong commands.

 

The set of information gives us an abstract picture, while the set of orders translate these abstract concepts to executable commands like Salaat, prayer, Fasting, Kindness, respect of others, honesty in dealing, tolerance and steadfastness in follwing through the orders of Allah SWT.

 

So, if the actions are in line with the transmitted or embedded information, we say iimaan is complete, the minimum required iimaan by Allah necessary to save a person from punishment of Allah and admit that person in heaven, while the lack of a required actions or the committing of forbidden action exposes that person to punishment, either in this lifetime, next or both depending on the severity of the violation of the orders of Allah SWT.

 

So, if we have an embedded code of iiman in our hearts, and we translate these codes to executable actions, we say we have secured the connection between belief and action, thus we have iiman, in contrast, if our actions do not show connection with our declared values of embedded codes and beliefs, then, the link that connects belief and action is not secure, and our safety is in turn not secure.

 

Therefore to be secure, we need to uphold justice, because, Justice is the best security system. Justice with fellow man, and justice with the maker;

 

 

Allah SWT says in Quraan:

 

( Alladiina Aamanuu wa lam yalbisuu iimaanahum bi dhulmin, ulaa'ika lahumul amnu wa hum muhtaduun")

 

( Those who ( Amanuu) and who did not COVER UP, their ( iimaan) with INJUSTICE, Those indeed deserve (AMN) and those are indeed GUIDED)

 

 

KEYWORDS FOR THE HINT

 

 

(AMN, GUIDE, SECURE, COMMAND, COVER-UP, DHULM, INJUSTICE)

 

 

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The Libaax San Ka Taabte Parable

 

 

Br. Libaax San Ka Taabte

 

 

Can you really pull the whiskers of a LION?

 

 

Let us apply this challenge to the concept of (iimaan)

 

Using your screen name as an example to explain (iimaan concept) to NOMADS who can relate more to LIONS and CAMELS instead of computers, here is an interesting story:

 

A Kenyan tour guide standing next to a LION is explaining to a Western tourist in Kenya's animal reserves " THIS LION is HARMLESS, HE DOES NOT ATTACK, DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"

 

 

STOP HERE FOR A MOMENT:

 

 

The tour guide has just given to the tourist:

 

1. Information that is expected to be BELIEVED

2. The action of the tourist will verify this BELIEF.

 

 

The Tour guide released the lion and the lion walks toward the tourist to be petted ( In sanka laga taabto).

 

The tourist panics, and runs away

 

The tour guide asks the tourist " Did I not tell you that "this LION is harmless", it will not attack?

 

 

The tourist responds, "yes , but did you tell the LION not to attack?"

 

The above joke and the tourist's action shows that the toutsit FAILED to believe the Tour guide, and therefore his action ( running away) showed that the information given to him did not settle in his head, in order for him to act on it.

 

So, in that Example , (iimaan) is two fold

 

1. Information to be believed

2. Actions that verify that the information was believed.

 

 

Whenever those two aspects of iimaaan are met, we say that is the proper iimaan which is required for a MUSLIM to have to enter Paradise.

 

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The Qiyaamah Position Finder Calculator

 

 

I am sure that you use a CALCULATOR for computing numbers, formulas etc. Many disciplines have developed their own calculators, for example, real estate professionals have their quick calculators for computing the amount of Ribaa you have to pay for the next 30 years. Every industry has developed a similar one, and I thought why not one for the next life.

 

I Call it the Qiyaama calculator. It will tell you with precision of your whereabouts in a day that no one has a zip code, A tribe, a nation, A president, a King or a Warlord.

 

That day we would only worry about saving our little rear ends from hot temperatures, and painful torments ( if you have ever sat in a parked car in Berbera, Djibouti, or Kismayo in hot season you can get the idea, 50+ is not rear end friendly).

 

But, how about a calculator for our future worth, I mean, after death, any thoughts bro/Sis?

 

Well I have the calculator for you, it is easy to compute, after entering couple of facts, you will immeidately see your place in the next life. Because you are still here, you can use the UNDO button of this calculator and reset it so that you are on the right track again. It is like traveling to the future, coming back and correcting your mistakes.

 

First Function : To calculate your location in the day of judgement :

 

1. Enter the ten top important things to you in this life.

 

2. Answer: Your location in the day of judgement is relative to where you have placed Allah in your list of important things. For example, if in the calculator you have entered Allah in # 7, in the day of judgement, your location will be # 7, relative to other people who placed Allah as # 1., fair enough.

 

If Allah's demands was not in your list of important things, then, your calculator will show ERROR, because Zero in the denominator generates error.

 

 

Second Function: Path Simulation.

 

You see, your compliance with Allah's commandments is called SIRAADUL MUSTAQEEM. ( The Straight Path) meaning the shortest path that will take you to Allah SWT.

 

There is another Path in the day of Judgment, it is called ( AL SIRAAD) The Path.

 

In the day of judgement, all of mankind will walk on this path toward their final home or jail.

 

Walking on this path is not easy, for starters, it is razor sharp, below the path is blazing fires of hell, hanging on its sides are hooks proportional to your sins committed in this life, so whenever you commit a sin, an error record is generated on your record and a corresponding hook which is proportional to that sin is placed along the path of the day of judgment, that hook will have your name written all over it, and if you do not repent from that specific sin, it will catch up with you when you least expect it and throw you in the pit of fire.

 

So you need a lot of balance as you walk along this thin and sharp path, so

 

1. If you were balanced in this life's Path, you will be balanced on that Path in the day of judgement,

 

2. If you were firm on following the commandments of Allah in this life's path, Your feet will be firm on that path in the day of judgment, you will not slip and slide away.

 

3. If you were responsive to the demands of Allah SWT in this Life, The Path will be responsive to your movement, you will move on it like a lightening, on the other hand, if you were reluctant or hesitant to respond to Allah's demands in this life, you will crawl like a beetle on the Path of the day of judgement and good people will be passing you right and left.

 

 

How much is this calculator you may ask.

 

This calculator is absolutely free.

 

This calculator is handy, easy to use, and it guaranteed to work for you,

 

I have enough quantities to ship, but you may not have enough time to live, so I advice you order your copy today, if you have an interest in a better life than the current one.

 

If you are satisfied with current life and do not see the point in thinking about life after death, you need no order, just stay chill'n.

 

Please submit your order on this thread, the calculator will be shipped to you as soon as I hear from you.

 

Nur

 

Nurtel Old Editions,

All rights NOT reserved

 

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From Somalinet Discussion Boards

 

Islamist Nur Versus Somali Secularists

 

 

Examples of past Discussions on Aqeedah issues:

 

 

Responding to a writer screen named Mr(X) I wrote:

 

 

To Mr (x)

 

You write:

 

" I think you are raping the religion. "

 

 

Answer:

 

Brother, anyone reasonable person who reads my post and this comment may think that you either do not know the meaning of the word RAPE, or RELIGION, I have my doubts that you are a scholar of Religion, so that leaves me have a reason to believe that your usage was not accurate. So clarify, otherwise you may not be credible in your judgement.

 

 

You Write;

 

 

" You are behaving like a politician by twisting words to get your points across. "

 

 

Answer:

 

 

Alxamdulillah that we agree that you can not trust politicians, I also think the same way about politicians, let us get better people, honest people who will rperesnt our peoples wishes without any personal stake for themselves in this present life.

 

What remains to be clarified is a proof to back up your claims, I clearly wrote that I am not in competition with you on seeking power or money, so where do you get the idea that I am lying? The only goal I have is to appeal to your conscious, which you are too scared to poen up for Allah, relax brother, I am a friend, not an enemy.

 

 

You Write:

 

"You are describing Somali Xeer or the tribal heads to be sovereigns drawing a sinister picture"

 

Aswer:

 

I am sure that you learned this surah as a kid, let us revisist and understand:

 

" Say Allah is ONE

Allah is SAMAD ( SOVREIGN)"

 

Look up your Webster dictionary for the meaning of the word SOVREIGN. After research, you will find that the word means no one has an authority over the SOVREIGN.

 

The Sovreign MUST own a DOMINION, and Allah owns the UNIVERSE, let me know who is challenging this statement.

 

The Sovreign by virtue of his ownership of his Dominion , passes laws.

 

Examples are:

 

1. The Law of Moses ( Towraat) the ten commandments.

 

2. The Law of Jesus ( Enjil)

 

3. The Law of Quraan.

 

 

This law is superior to any law before, and after. It is in effect and people have the right to disobey, and Allah has the right to punish, in this life and the the next.

 

So, make your move.

 

 

You write:

 

 

" The only think clear from here is the ambition of Ikhwans to call the shots. Your group is only interested in power and are in a mission to discredit and finally destroy other power bases"

 

 

Brother:

 

You are intoxicated with POWER. Why no try humility for a change, like living a simple life, helping the poor orphans and widows, teaching Quraan to the ignorant, counselling troubled teens to be better citizens, helping people live a decent life, advising them against Qat, Alcohol, wild parties, murder, lies, and instead instill in them Good characters ( Akhlaaq) of trustworhiness, truth in speech, dependability etc, some of what the wadaads are attempting to do if you let them.

 

 

The wadaad, is attempting to carry you on his back to safetyland in the next life by teaching you to live good in this life following Allah's commands, and you want to bite the wadaad, you can kill him, but you will not stay behind for long, and by then, the truth will surface, and it will be too late, there is no UNDO button in Aakhira, Microsoft Corporation products do not operate in that environment.

 

 

You write;

 

" I cannot start a full diatribe now for I do not have time but I will be back"

 

Answer

 

I can not wait the thriller.

 

 

Nur

 

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Q. What is the Aqeedah concept of Al Walaa and Al Baraa ?

 

A question posed by Nomad Hanif, her was my answer:

 

 

Bismillah wa bihi nastaciin.

 

Hanif bro.

 

Jazaakallahu Khairan for posing a great question at the most needed time ever, a time when issues got mixed up, and fundemental concept in Islam got intangled with whims and desires.

 

Before we define the concept of Al Walaa and Al Baraa in Islam, let me congratulate you for picking one of the most Tawxiid centric screen names, Hanif, is an outstanding name, it actually desctibes the concept for which you are seeking an answer for.

 

Hanif, means a person who always is searching to connect with his maker and away from any other diversion, a person, who seeks Allah SWT, but at the same time diverging away from offering his services to othet than Allah SWT, in that sense, the name Hanif is one coin, depicting walaa on one side and baraa on the other. Abraham, the patriarch of all Monotheits was one such a Hanif, Allah SWT called him Hanifan Musliman, Navigating his way to Allah always and submittinh his will to Allah( True Jews at their time, true Christians at their time and True Muslims all allign themselves with Abraham central concept, because Abraham was the Father of Islam ( submission and allegiance to Allah alone).) ,

 

Abrahams legacy was that of true devotion to Allah SWT and denial of other forms of subjugation to creatures, be they humans, animals ar objetcs. Abrahams famous statement was " Innaa bura-aa- u, minkum wa mimmaa tacbuduuna min duunillaahi, kafarnaaa bikum, wa badaa beinanaa wa baynakum al cadaawata wal baghdaa-a, xataa tuminuu billaahi waxdah " meaning " We are indeed disowning you ( since you are criminals by worshipping other than Allah)and we further disassociate ourselves with all that you worship other than Allah, ( and because of this disownment and disassociation) clear enemity and hatred is apparent between us, up untill ( you repent) and worship Allah alone "

 

For that bold statement, Allah honored Abraham by calling him Hanif ( mid ka soo issha waxaan Allah aheyn), Allah further instructed believers to make Abraham thier example for his brave stand against his very own tribe and father, and for his partying ways with his people on the basis of belief in Allah.

 

Abraham's word of Walaa and Baraa, became the center principle of islam, Allah SWT says : Wa jacalahaa kalimatan baaqiyatan fii caqibihi lacallahum yarjicuun " meaning, " Allah made (that word of Abraaham) a legacy word after (Abraham) so that (Poeple) can refer back to (that word whenever they get lost from the true path of Allah ).

 

That word, of Walaa and Baraa, took the present form under the Messneger of Allah Muhammad SAWS when he declared " Laa Elaaha illaa Allah' no allegiance to any other Sovereign other than Allah as the only rightful Sovereign.

 

 

Allah SWT mentioned this concept in numerous verses in Quraan : " Ucbuduu Allah wajtanibuu Al Taaaghuut" Serve Allah, and stay away from the Service of transgressors" Taghuut in Arabic comes from the root Daghaa, which is when a measured quantity crosses thershold or its limits. So , any human who claims to have devine rights becomes Dhaguut in that sense, which exactly what Pharaoh of Egypt has claimed when he was subjugating the helpless slaves of the Children of Israel. Pharoah calimed " Maa calimtu lakum min ilaahin gheirii " meaning, I know of no other Sovereign except me to rule over you"

 

Walaa in Arabic has the root of Yalii, meaning: following, Walaa comes from the noun Waliyy ( friend, closest to you, caretaker, overseer, defender, stake owner ). So, in that regard, Walaa means the concept that assigns Allah alone to be ( friend, closest to you, caretaker, overseer, defender, stake owner ) for a believer by virtue of his creation of the same.

 

Walaa, therefore is the result of love of Allah, because once you assign all the above qualities to Allah alone like Abraham defined who should be his Waliyy : " The one who created me, so he(only) can guide me, and the One who feeds and quenches me, and when I get sick, Allah is the one who cures, And the one who will (finally) cause me to die and the will resurruct me, and in the day of judgement the one with whom i place my hopes to forgive my sin, Once you believe in these favors, you can not allig yourself with other than Allah SWT, you cant help but love Allah with all your soul and body and mind, a sign that you Allah also is reciprocating that love for you.

 

Walaa of Allah SWT, therefore is born out of love of Allah. Allah SWT says in holy Quraan : Innamaa waliyyukumullahu wa rasuuluhu walladiina aamanuu" " Your Waliyy, is indeed Allah SWT, his Messneger and the believers. This verse clearly draws the meaning of Walaa to be the ultimate alligiance which is much higher than any other temporal or worldly allegiances that are born out of passing interests of the lowly life of this world, while Allah SWT is calling believrs for a better life in the hereafter if the form allegiance with Allah who will deliver his promises unlike humans who always let you down and betray you when you count on them in difficult times.

 

Baraa, on the other hand is the exact opposit of the Walaa concept, total disowing, disassociation, cutting of sympathy, due to the crime of disbelief in Allah SWT and befriending their enemy Satan..

 

The word Baraa has roots in (Ba ri ah) among its derivatives, is healing from an ailment, clearing your stand that you are not of a crime that is committed by a group or a person.

 

In ancinet times, one wars brake out between tribes, neutral tribes had to show their Baraa-ah ( they are not part of the warring parties) so that they are not drawn to an unjust war or to pay the price of being a supprort of a party.

 

Allah SWT instructs believers in Suurah al Kaafiroon ( The unbelievers) : " Say o ye unbelievers, I do not worship that you worship, and you do not worship that which I worship..... to you is your way of life(which is based on your beliefs) and to me is my way of life ( based on my beliefs).

 

When Abraham practiced Baraa ah of his people, Allah SWT blessed him with the following:

 

1. Children at old age ( he had Ishmael and Issac)

 

2. His Children and decendents were honored to become leaders for mankind, Allah said to Abraham" I will make you a leader to mankind, Abraham then asked " And my decendents?" Allah responded, transgressors of your progeny are not to benefit from this offer.

 

3. The house Abraham built for Allah in Mecca was accepted.

 

4.. He was given the title khalil ul Allah ( Allah's friend).

 

This topic is much deeper than I could respond to this thread, inshAllah when I get around to it again, I shall add more of my thoughts, till then, hold the rope of Allah tight, do not differ on the eventual purpose of being true servants of Allah SWT alone.

 

 

To be contiuned

 

 

2005 i-Nuuri Caqiidah First, Somaliaonline Summer Program.

 

If You Dont take a Stand For Allah Alone, Y'd Fall For Anything Else

 

Nur

 

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Aqeedah Concepts and Terminology Series

 

 

What is Istixlaal?

 

 

Istixlaal

 

A Somali aquaintance of mine once approached me with the weirdest request ever: He asked me if I could arrange his marriage ceremony with his Somali live-in girl friend. I gues in this time and age, we Somalis have come a long way from days we consdiered such living arrangements as non acceptable to even utter. Enter the twenty first century, oh boy!, do I feel a stranger in a fast paced world?

 

I asked the guy, " why he wanted to go through the trouble of marriage if he is already living with the woman?" he said, " she is worried about her folks ", and that was the only consideration in his and her minds, they see absolutely nothing wrong with cohabitation. welcome to the Aqeedah principle of Istixlaal or (Banneysi) as brother Baashi put it.

 

I declined NOT to get involved, but in the days that follwed that incidence, the discussion trigerred a yearning to read on aqeedah books about the ruling of such situations and people.

 

I knew that humans are prone to sin, and that a sin is not kufr in itself but can lead to kufr, just like an ailment is not death but can lead to death, however, I wanted to know where is the borderline that divides a sin from blatant kufr.

 

These days, amid the confusion and arguments about violations of islamic principles, we find that some Muslims would jump the gun on anyone to declare them a kafir without the blink of an eye, while on the other side, some Muslims would always find an excuse for anyone who no matter how extreme their actions or views are.

 

Usually, when the latter group comes to the defence of a Sinner who commits a sin that is tanatamount to Kufr, they say that if the sinner who committed a Kufr action or said a Kufr word believes that his actions and words were not halaal, then he is a sinner not a kafir, on the other hand, theys say if he is unrepentent and believes that he did nothing wrong, then he is a kafir.

 

The above classification is very popular among many present day scholars of the sharia, although there is no clear proof ( Daleel) from the Sharia, Quraan and the Sunnah to support such statement.

 

The earliest recorded incidence in which such argument was used that i could find was during Al Qadi Ciyaadh's time when a man in Iraq was reported to have insulted the Prophet SAWS. The scholars at the time differed, some ruling that the man became a kafir for insulting the prophet SAWS, and others maintained that if the man considered his action to be halaal, then he was kaafir, if on the other hand, he believed that his insults were not halaal, then his insult is a sin.

 

The problem with the above is that, the Qaadi Ciyaadh reported it from Mutakallimin ( Polemics masters) in Iraq who were not considered competent in Sharia at their times. Ibn Taymia in his famous book, Al Sarimul Masluul, says that the above classification has no oigin ( ASL) in Quraan and Sunnah.

 

The Salaf of the Ummah are in consensus that if anyone commits an action that is in the Kufr category, that the person becomes a kafir, regardless if he claims his actions halaal or not, because the fact that the person is not repenting from his deeds is sufficient to prove that he considers his actions or words to be halaal. Because iimaan ( belief) and Kufr are abstracts, we detect their existence through their fruits; actions or words, so whenever an action that is deemed to be iimaan is done, the we say that person is Mumin, according to the Hadeeth that if a man is seen praying regularly in the Masjid, we should become his witnesses that he is a believer, likewise, if a person commits an action that has no other explanation other than being a blatant disregard of our faith, then that person is what he has said or does, we should not separate the crime from the criminal.

 

In conclusion, if a person does an action that is Nifaaq, or kufr, then he becomes either a Munafiq or a kafir due to his actions, because iimaan is qowl and camal, deeds and words, and the words are further divided to words of the mouth, which require to be verified by actions, according to the Hadeeth, that iimaan is something in the heart, verified by deeds.

 

 

Walllahu aclam.

 

 

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Am I A Munafiq?

 

Well, that is a difficult question, first let us learn the relationship between iimaan, sin and kufr to see where nifaaq belongs.

 

 

1. No Soul will go to Jannah which is not a Muslim(a)

 

2. No one can be Muslim without Shahaada (Tawxiid)

 

3. Shahaada is information, we are required to believe in and bear witness thereof.

 

4. The test to see if we indeed believe in information represented by the Shahaada are our deeds:

 

So our faith is composed of a

 

A. set of Information we are required to believe.

 

B. Set of Commands we are ordered to obey

 

The extent of your belief in the information that our Prophet SAWS delivered is measured by the extent of orders that we obey.

 

In other words, our obedience to the orders of Allah, is a reflection of our belief in the information delivered to us.

 

So , Islam is composed of a two sets:

 

A) A set of information to be believed in, like Allah, Jannah, angels, etc .

 

B) A set of orders to abide with, such as Prayers, (Salat), Fasting, Upholding Justice, etc .

 

The orders are subdivided in to two categories:

 

1.Orders to do something

2.Orders to stay away from doing something

 

If Allah orders us to do something, and we fail to comply, the reason could be:

 

a. We do not believe in the information

b. We believe in it but we are arrogant

c. We are MENTALLY CHALLENGED

 

If (a) that is clear kufr

If (b) That is also kufr, the type of Sheitan

If © We may be the same case like a crazy person, Mentally Challenged, no responsibility.

 

If we are ordered to stay away from something, and we do not, we have the following scenario:

 

a. We do not believe in the information b. We are arrogant

c. We can not resist temptation

d. We are MENTALLY CHALLENGED

 

All but case © are covered above.

 

If case © is the situation, then that is called disobedience (Sin)(Macsiyah) and it is what Adam and Eve , (Hawaa) aleyhimaa assalaam have committed. It does not make one a kaafir by itself. ( The Khawaarij are the only to claim that a sin can make one a Kafir )

 

To generalize the above.

 

If a person does something he is ordered not to do, the driver is more likely weakness against temptation, and that person is not a kaafir, this is the case of Adam and Eve, Aleyhimaa assalaam .

 

If a person refuses to do something he is ordered to do, the driver of his action is more likely arrogance, like the case of Sheitan .

 

Now we visit a new territory:

 

There is a principle for detecting iiman ( Faith) levels developed by Sheikh Ibn Taymiyah. Called (Talaazumul Dhaahir wal Baatin )( Synregy of the Apparent actions of a person with the Hidden Motives within the consciousness )

 

I will simplify it for you again.

 

The inside beliefs and the outward actions of a person are always working in harmony. Except when an outside disturbance influences that person attention. When as a result, the outwardly actions of that person projects and acts contrary of what is supposed to be inside .

 

Meaning.

 

In Systems Science, when we input a signal into a balanced system, we observe an output that reflects the shape of the original signal output + the function of the signal that operated on the system.

 

In the absence of outside disturbance, we can always predict the output. But when an outside element disturbs the system, the output will not be predictable.

 

A person who is a kaafir therefore will normally act as a kaafir. Sabeelul kaafireen

 

And a person who is a muslim will always act like a Muslim. Sabeelul Mumineen

 

In general, if you leave anyone alone, what he/she does is reflecting what they believe . But the minute that person feels that he/she is being observed, that feeling will somewhat effect the action of that person.

 

An example is when you catch a child making funny faces on a mirror the child will immediately alter his behaviour to an acceptable manner. This is called conforming.

 

So, when a Kaafir lives with Muslims, he may act like Muslim, to avoid problems. He is called a Munaafiq .

 

And a Muslim who lives with Kufaar may at times act like kuffar, to avoid problems. He is called Mukrah .

 

Now, a Somali Nomad who lives in Somalia, USA or Europe, is free to practice his faith, so if that person does not practice, or he acts contrary to his faiths tenets, his actions are an indicators of what is missing in his heart. In this case the actions or their absence are an indictor of the iimaan inside that person.

 

However a Muslim who lives in tyranny, his actions may not be indicator of his belief. Because, if this person practices his faith, he is afraid for his life. As a result this person conceals his faith portraying himself as non Muslim, when in effect he fully believes his faith and is willing tp practise it to the fullest if he was not afraid. His fear, though could be justifiable or may be unjustifiable, in which case he is in grave error.

 

Allah says : Are they same he who spends all his nights praying and prostrating, alert for aakhirah, and the one who is in darkness..............................."

Nasalu Allaha al caafiyah. Aamin

 

 

Walllahu aclam.

 

 

2000 Nurtel Communications Old Edition

Paradise is Possible Summer Campaign

 

 

Levels Of Iman: Second Aqeedah Question :

 

This article was also prompted by a similar question that I have answered in plain English, My way is always keep things as simple as possible, because the majority of people are indeed simple, not scholarly, again enjoy the simplicity of Aqeedah, brainteasers are not my cup of Caano Geel, so enjooy reading:

 

 

Levels of Faith ( IIMAAN).

 

 

A viewer with screenname Johnny Jake asked me on another thread if there are different levels of being a Muslim:

 

 

Here is the answer I posted 2 Years ago:

 

Bismillah, wa bihi nastaciin

 

 

Islam literally means submission to a higher authority .

 

As such, one gives up his power over his life at will, taking direction of how to live from that higher source.

 

To be a Muslim, just like graduating from college, there is minimum requirements. Once these minimum requirements are met, a person is a muslim.

 

Islam is composed of a word to utter and actions to perform

 

The word to utter is further divided into two categories.

 

A. The word of the heart, which is belief in what has been revealed .

 

B. The word of the mouth, which is uttering the manifestation of the singularity of the authority that created the universe and everything in it, and following the course of the messenger who delivered this mesage .

 

Deeds are further divided in to two parts.

 

A. Deeds of the heart, which is the intention that drives our actions .

 

B. Physical deeds, like prayers, fasting etc.

 

If a person does not utter the word of the heart, meaning he does not believe, he is not a Muslim

 

If a person does not utter the word of the mouth, eventough he believes in his heart, he is not Muslim, he is like Sheitan, or Abi talib , the uncle of the prophet SAWS.

 

If a person's heart does not do the deeds of the heart, meaning he has no intention to do something, that person, is not a Mulsim, The prophet said " (Inamaal aamalu bil niyaat) the validity of deeds are conditional to having the right intention(NIYA). That is why manslaughter is a lesser charge than murder, because the accused did not intend to kill, no (NIYA).

 

If a person does not do physical deeds, Like salaat, fasting etc. then, we look into what motivates that person to do or not to do what he is been ordered or prohibited from.

 

If he does not do what has been ordered to do, that person is usually driven by disbelief, arrogance, or he is Mentally Challenged (SAFAAHA). All of which make him not a Muslim, except for a Mentally Challenged person, which wholly or partially makes him unaccountable to his deeds ( SAFEEH)

 

If he does something prohibited, he is more likely driven by strong desire or Lust, arrogance, disbelief or being Mentally Challenged( SAFAAHA). All but Lust will make him a non-Muslim,

 

Doing something prohibited because of lust and uncontrollable desire, is called a (MACSIYA) a SIN and it does not make a person by itself a non-Muslim. Accumulation of sins lead to disbelief in the long run though, just like sand pepples form mountains, A Muslim, therefore, does not trivilize sins, but looks up to the importance of the authority that he/she is disobeying.

 

 

Wa Salaamu Alaa man ittabaca al hudaa.

 

2000 Nurtel Communications

Paradise is Possible Summer Campaign

 

 

Nur

[Nur]

Revisited, for a new audience

 

 

From Nurtel Archives ( Somaliaonline edition, some changes appear from original version for clarification)

 

 

Fourteen centuries ago, Allah SWT sent a Messenger(SAWS) to mankind, A man who was raised in Makkah, present day Saudi Arabia, and who belonged to a tribe called Quraish, the decendants of Prophets Ismail and Abraham (aleyhimaa assalam).

 

The Messenger of Allah was sent to an Arab speaking people, and naturally, he communicated with them in Arabic language. Every messenger also did communicate with his people by way of their respective language and culture with examples they could understand and relate it to their lives. The reason is that Allah intended the message to be understood, and his teachings followed. Whe we fail to address people with analogies they understand we fail to deliver the true meaning of our message and confusion shrouds our minds. That is why some of our respected Ulema fail to convince the new generation of Muslims and non Mulsims, because the Ulema are "NOT CONNECTED" to the same media, nor speak the lingo of the times, as a result, a great deal of knowledge remains untransmitted, and not utilized. Based on the above prelude, I am about to convey the history of Tawheed with analogoies that cann be understood by residents of North America, and to an extent most westernized Somalis, specially my cousins in Qurac Dheer, Somali Peninsula, who listen to Heavy Metal in their tents.

 

 

The Arabian Tribe Quraish was the center of attention of all Arabs at the time as it controlled the holly shrine Kaaba, which represented a tribute erected by Prophet Abraham and his son Ismail for the remembrance and reverence of Allah ALONE on earth.

 

These days, life was simple, there was no TV, Radio, newspapers, sitcoms, tabloids and Somaliaonline.

 

So people communicated one-on-one and they enjoyed poetry and oratory in public places, similar to the ancient Greeks and Romans lavish theaters.

 

They mastered the language early in their childhood, and as adults they were quick to understand the meaning of every spoken word.

 

When the prophet SAWS called them for Islam, they asked him about the essense of his message.

 

The prophet told them ( My message is laa ilaaha illa Allahu)

 

A bedouin responded, (then all Arabs and non Arabs wil fight against you).

 

The bedouin knew the meaning of the word ILAAH in Arabic language.

 

In Suuratl Jinn, aayah 19, Allah says " And when the Abdullah Servant of Allah stood up to calling for his (ilaah), (the polytheists) almost ganged up against him"

 

This brings us to the core issue, TERMINOLOGY. understanding these terminology the way the SALAF understood it, will make us do what they did. The Salaf were proficient in their language, lived their times and fulfilled their commitment to their best. Can the same be said about us? When we speak about Islam do we live our times? are we taking our responsibilities seriously as they did to make Islam interwoven throughout our lifestyle? are we fulifilling our responsibility to Allah? or are we wishy washy people?

 

SALAF were not a group of people, it was a period of time in history, in which Islam blossomed, and the word of Allah reached the corners of the world. Generally it is referred to the first three generations of Saxaabah and the taabiciin, and taabicu taabiciin.

 

Today we are trying to understand what used to drive these people to do monumental achievements recorded to their credit in every sphere of life. They were more pious in ibaadah, more involved in community and political environment, more accomplished in jurisprudence Fiqh, sciences, the arts, and business, they were leaders for humanity, they freed Europe from darkness and corrupt Kings and Church leaders, they traded with asia with honesty and fairness which resulted mass conversion of Asians to Islam, the religion of common sense.

 

The key to understanding what motivated these Salaf generation lies in the components of the very word that changed history

 

The Word was :

 

 

" Laa ilaaha Ilaa Allah)"

 

 

Once Quraish heard the word, they became alarmed.

 

why? because they understood its far reaching meaning more than most muslims understand today.

 

This strategy to present this Word before all the detais of Islam's social change was not the choice of our prophet Muhammad SAWS. Nor did it happen thoughtlessly. The Messenger was commanded to do it that way. And there is a wisdom for us to ponder. In contrast, today, the first thing we tell non Muslims is the Hijaab, or Sharia, we fail to set up the right comminications link between man and his maker, the link of Tawheed, laa ilaaha ilaa Allah, which can transform the human being from a defiant to a humble person.

 

Imagine, the Messenger SAWS sitting on the corner of Yamaaniyah of the Kaaba, making ibaadah (worship), and around him ther are circumventing female naked pilgrim women making tawaaf and all he is asking people to do was " SAY , LAA ILAAHA ILLAA ALLAH" not to cover up their bodies, because he was ordered to address the root cause of man's rebellion against his maker which is his ignorance of his maker.

 

He knew if they accept this word, and its requirements, that all evil will be wiped. and in twenty three short years, it was.

 

 

So, We may ask, how was it possible that the decendants of the father of TAWXIID, Prophet Abraham, Peace be upon him, The honorable tribe of Quraish, put three hundered and sixty idols asnaam (Gods) inside a house dedicated to the sole reverence of Allah, the one and only god?

 

It is all about terminology.

 

Just like Satan persuaded Adam and Eve, to eat from the forbidden tree, calling it ( Shajaratul Khuld), Satan inspired Quraish to worship extensions of Allah through what they have claimed as his daughters, just as Christians today ascribe a son to Allah as an extension of the Real Ilaah (subhaanahu wa tacalaa camma yaquuluuna culuwan kabeera).

 

So Satan inspired them to select the names of these goddesses from the root name of Allah, to make it easy for people ta accept it (like copying a trade mark with slight change, like naming your supermarket SAFESTWAY instead of SAFEWAY, or naming your autopart shop TRECKAUTO instaead of TRAKAUTO).

 

So they named the first godess ( Al Laata, from Allah and Al Uzza, From Al Azeez etc.)

 

This tactic in Arabic language is called ILXAAD, Allah mentioned in the Quraan saying " Inna ladeenu yulxiduuna fee asmaa'ih laa yakhfowna calaynaa)". (Those who change the purpose behind the meaning of His Names, are not hidden from our view)

 

Therefore Ilxaad It means changing the purpose behind the meaning of a word, just like Sodomy is called GAY today.

 

 

Just like unsuspecting SAFEWAY Supermarkets customers can shop at a phony store cashing illegaly on someone else's trade mark, by naming his supermarkets SAFESTWAY, The decendants of Abraham were tricked by SATAN to worship others beside Allah therby satan scored a point to support his promise to to Allah that he will mislead mankind.

 

When Prophet Muhammad came with his message, he challenged the tribe of Quraish that all but Allah is fake as an ILAAH. This caused a major problem.

 

But what does ILAAH mean.

 

The root meaning of the word ILAA caomes from the Arabic word (ALIHA) the masdar of this word means among others:

 

1. To seek a protection ( Like an infant seeks mother's love , wormth and protection)

2. To seek a rescuer ( in times of distress)

3. To seek the highest authority, no one scapes from ( Jurisdiction and Sovreighnty).

4. It meant leadership. ( ZACIIM UL QOWM)

5. Any thing one follows even desires is called ilaah

 

Now when all these meaning were assigned to Allah alone, Quraish had a reason to be alarmed. After all they were the masters of the Arabs at the time. They controlled the trade routes, the Pilgramage and the business it created, The slave trade, Gambling, fornication, drinking and all social evils. They were the losers if the system changed and Muhammad came with a very radical view of the world and how it should be run.

 

They offered him to lead Quraish as their Zaciim, if he stops this word.

 

They offered him money, and most beautiful women.

 

But Mohammad SAWS was not looking for power, presidency, good life, rather he had a mission and a message to deliver, and against it nothing could distract him, so he said his famous statement

 

" If they place the sun on my right palm, and the moon on my left palm, to stop my mission, I would not stop preaching the message that man should surrender to his creator willingly)

 

(note that all creatures are submiting to Allah unwillingly since they have no control over their creation and death and all natural causes that are limiting their freedom).

 

" and then Allah ( ISTAWAA) on the heavens while it was smoke ( Dust particles) and said to them and the earth "surrender willingly or unwillingly" they said, we surrender willingly,....."

 

Before Mohammad SAWS, Prophet Jesus (aleyhi salam) delivered the same message, and the Romans with the help of Jews, planned for his murder, but Allah lifted him up to the heavens and saved him from their wickedness.

 

Today, the Tawheed word exists, but there is no correspondense between this word and the reality of those who say it, hence, saying shahaada today is like a tenant signing a rental agreement he did no understand,

 

Is such a document binding? scolars say NO.

 

A further proof for the above observation is that this word has not stirred in our lives, what it has stirred in the lives of the SALAF AL SAALIX, before us.

 

They said the word, and its effects were detected in their lives and the entire world.

 

We also said the word, and it has no significant effect on our lives.

 

A wise person shouldn't then fool themselves that the King has still some clothes.

 

A good way to measure understanding of this word, is a measure of actions it creates in our lives.

 

If the actions are not there. It may mean that there is no gold reserves in the Bank to validate the currency in circulation. The root cause, the meaning of the word and the belief may not be there.

 

 

Nur

 

2003 Nurtel Communications

 

Paradise is Possible Summer Campaign

 

------------------------------------------------------

 

What Is Kufr?

 

Sister Raula, a Somaliaonline Nomad posed this question, what is the difference of Kufr and Shirk?

 

 

Kufr linguistically means to cover a something, farmers are referred in the Quraan as Kuffar, because they cover seeds in soil to grow crops. Legally kufr means the denial of pre-programmed instinct of the belief in the ONE true Originator of all creatures. Kufr can be of different strokes:

 

1. Kufr that is denial of confirmation of Nima ( Goodness given to us by Allah SWT) is called minor kufr.

 

2. Kufr that is the denial of Allah's authority over our lives is called Major Kufr.

 

The first Kufr does not mean one who committed it is Kaafir, it means they committed a grave sin.

 

The Second Kufr, is degenerate, it conflicts with the essence of our faith, that person is Kaafir without dispute.

 

Shirk (polytheism) on the other hand means that one gives part of his allegiance to other than Allah, consdiders Allah as one of the recipients of his honoring and worship, considers others than Allah in matters that Allah alone should be considered. Shirk is a description of Kufr in action, while Kufr is the fundemental cornerstone of Shirk. Every Mushrik is necessarily a Kafir, but not all Kuffaar are necessarily Mushkriks, an example is although Jews are monotheists in worship to Allah alone, they are considered kuffaar for denying the messendership of Prophet Muhammad SAWS due to their denial of his prophecy , since they made it part of their faith that Gentiles can not be Prophets ( Eventhough Muhammad was a descendant of Abraham, the Patriarch of Jews), While some so called Muslims commit Shirk by worshipping dead saints in their graves beleiving that these dead saints can intervene of their behalf and save their souls.

 

As you have noticed, The Shahaada terms are not understood by many present day " Muslims", their actions show how ignorant they are about the Tawheed principle, because, Shahaada means witnessing of a fact, if the fact of the tawheed is fuzzy in their perception, how can they become witnesses?

 

 

You write:

 

How are the terms Kufr and Shirk very much different? In particular on the subject of the Quraysh who venerated LAT, MANAT, and UZZA (SANAM’s –Idols) to emulate Allah s.w.

 

Dada

 

The worship of Allah is a natural instinct in all human beings, we are born with it, its our arch enemy Satan that corrupts this belief and drags mankind to comkit Shirk with Allah SWT. Satan is very resourceful, to lead mankind away from the right course, Satan follows the crowd until they take his adviced at which point he misleads them away to Shirk or Kufr. One of his tactics is to infringe on Allah's trade marks, Allah's creatures. Allah SWT says " Fala yughayirunna Khalqallah " " mankind will obey Satan by tampering with Allah's creations". This verse was revealed when the Mushriks deformed some of the animals and claimed that they were to be sacrificed to their dieties who they considered to be Allah's partners in worship. Trademark infringement for the purpose of stealing customers away from Allah SWT is one of Satan's tactics.

 

Today, there are no physical idols that people worship in the Muslims world, does that mean that Satan closed shop in our Muslim land? Not really, Satan found other tricks to confuse Muslims to loose sight of their commitment to Allah SWT. The main motivation Satan uses for this job is terrorizing Muslims with poverty, and as a result he promises them wealth only if they adopt other ways of life that non Muslims have attained financial successes. By far this tactic is the deadliest in terms of its devastating power as only few people stand a chance lasting out this temptation.

 

When you look at what a progressive Muslim mean, first we need to define which way are we to progress? Progress in terms of fulfilling which need? and the sponsor of such progress.

 

You will be surprised to know that this hoopla of progress emanates from non Islamic philosophy that considers Islam as a not worthy way of life, hence any departure from islam is seen as a progress, the more one cuts ties with islamic principles, the more progressive one is seen.

 

 

Nur

[Nur]

Nomads

 

A tough aqeedah question for you:

 

We know that Laa ilaaha Illa Allahu, Muhammdan Rasuulullahu is the first Pillar of Islam, and the key to Paradise.

 

What happens when a person who says this word, yet fails to understand its meaning?

 

Does it protect him from committing Shirk?

 

Does it help him in the day of Judgement?

 

 

This is an open book test, consult your local Sheikh.

 

Nur

[S.O.S]

All praise is due to Allah (swt) whose Guidance and Mercy we rely on, truly, none of whom He guided can be misguided, and none of whom He misguided can be guided. I bear witness that there is no god worthy of worship but Allah (swt), and that Muhammad is His slave and final Messenger, may Allaah’s blessings be upon him, his family, his companions and all those who followed him in righteousness.

 

Brother Nur, considering the questions, I thought that it would be too complicated for me to answer each question separately, I decided to limit myself in answering only the first question, leaving enough for the rest to think about. So here is a short and simplistic answer -to your indeed rightly timed- “very tough aqeedah questionâ€!

 

What happens when a person who says this word, yet fails to understand its meaning?

To say Laa ilaaha Ill-Allaah, Muxammadan Rasuul Ul-Allaah, without knowing it’s meaning is not enough. Knowledge is central to that which you say (Kalimah), without which otherwise would be useless since you cannot believe it firmly and act upon it. Similarly, knowing without believing and/or acting upon would be useless. Therefore knowledge of the Kalimah (Laa ilaaha Ill-Allaah, Muxammadan Rasuul Ul-Allaah) is merely the first of many conditions governing the standard contract between Allaah (swt) and us (Muslims), as made clear by His agent/witness through the apparent condition in the mentioning of (Muxammadan Rasuul Ul-Allaah) as required part of the Kalimah (to be valid).

 

Allah ordered His Messenger to “Know that (Laa ilaaha Ill-Allaahu) none has the right to be worshiped...†(Qur’aan 47:19). Also, when Allah was distinguishing those who truly believed in Him with knowledge from those still in ignorance who “…if you ask them who created them, will surely say: “Allahâ€...†(Qur’aan 43:87), Allaah made the point that the first group were those “...who bear witness to the truth knowingly (i.e. believed in the Oneness of Allaah, and obeyed His Orders), and they know (the facts about the Oneness of Allaah)†(Qur’aan 43: 86).

 

As mentioned in the hadeeth of Qatada on the questioning in the grave, that some people will answer “I don’t remember, but I used to say what other people used to sayâ€, the two angels would reply to them, “You did not know and you did not follow guidanceâ€, so they will be hit with an iron hammer as such, their cry will be heard by everything near humans and jinn excluded (Bukhari/Muslim/Axmed). Of most interesting is to our case, is the angelic line when they reply “You did not know and you did not follow guidance†which shows the knowledge dependency of guidance.

 

That is why when our Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Whoever dies knowing that there is no god except Allaah will enter Paradise†(Muslim), was only referring to those who fulfil the necessary conditions in order for their statements to be valid. Cumar Ibn Cabdul-Caziiz (may Allaah be pleased with him) used to say: “Whoever worships Allaah without knowledge, will do more damage than what he puts right.†Mucaad Ibn Jabal (may Alaah be pleased with him) also said: “Knowledge should precede action, because if actions and intentions are done without knowledge, then ignorance, misguidance and desires will prevail.â€

 

Knowledge is also the source of Iimaan, because it strengthens your belief in the Kalimah (word). This is clear from the hadeeth of Ibn Azib (may Allah be pleased with him) which explains the verse “Allaah will keep firm those who believe (iimaan), with Firm Word in this world (i.e. they’ll keep worshipping Allaah alone), and in the Hereafter (explained in the next hadeeth)...†(Qur’aan 14:27), which he related from the prophet (Allaah’s blessings and peace be upon him) that: “When a Muslim is questioned in his grave, he will testify that none has the right to be worshiped except Allaah and Muxammad is the Messenger of Allaah.†(Bukhari/Muslim).

 

Besides knowledge, there are of course six other important conditions of the Kalimah which may could be discussed next time.

 

w/c

[Nur]

SOS

 

MashAllah, a good response, lets wait for others before we can make a final comment on these questions.

 

 

Well, where is the crowd, is Aqeedah topic that boring, no answer to the questions I posed (except for SOS)? I know how to make this page humming with responses, add some Qabiiil or Women/men related issues and the server overflows!

 

Nur

[Dhubad.]

We know that Laa ilaaha Illa Allahu, Muhammdan Rasuulullahu is the first Pillar of Islam, and the key to Paradise.

 

What happens when a person who says this word, yet fails to understand its meaning?

 

A Key usually consists of a specially-shaped piece of flat metal, with cut notches (forming teeth), so if a Key doesn't have teeth than it is useless and can not open any lock. So the person who says Laa ilaaha Illa Allahu, Muhammdan Rasuulullahu without its proper meaning will be same as a toothless Key.

[Captain Xalane]

Originally posted by Nur:

Nomads

 

A tough aqeedah question for you:

 

We know that Laa ilaaha Illa Allahu, Muhammdan Rasuulullahu is the first Pillar of Islam, and the key to Paradise.

 

What happens when a person who says this word, yet fails to understand its meaning?

 

Does it protect him from committing Shirk?

 

Does it help him in the day of Judgement?

 

 

This is an open book test, consult your local Sheikh.

 

Nur

Maybe some sheikhs might not know coz to know and to understand are two different things e.g.one might know the quran and the hadiths and yet fail to understand and in the Quran .

surah 3,al imran, 190,Allah (Swt) challenges men of understanding to think about the issues that are not to be overlooked.

''Verily In the creations of the heavens and the earth,and in the alternation of night and day,there are indeed signs for men of understanding''..

 

This was just an example to back up my claim of understanding being different from knowing though are connected to each other.U understand first then get to know.Back to the point now,One who doesn't understand or doesn't know the meanings of shahada and says it ,he just mentioned as a mention and not by knowledge or understanding.When the shahada is legible is when one understands the shahada,then believes in the principles of shahada and everything that follows and afterwords is when one confesses and says the words aloud.Allah knows best but Allah judges from understanding and knowing the things that one says and not by mentioning them for the sake of mentioning.So to answer ur question,nothing happens to a person who says the shahada while not understanding it or knowing it and the status of the person will not be different from before i.e is not muslim.Again,Allah knows best.

[Nur]

Lt. Xalane

 

You write: So to answer ur question,nothing happens to a person who says the shahada while not understanding it or knowing it and the status of the person will not be different from before i.e is not muslim.Again,Allah knows best.

 

 

Well put, Shahada is only valid when backed up with knowledge and certainty ( Yaqeen) as Allah says " Illaa man shahida bil xaqi wa hum yaclamuun" Except for he who bears witness of the Xaqq ( Tawxid) aided with knowledge"

 

 

Nur

[Nur]

Khalaf walaal

 

You pose an Athiests Question:

 

How could an all-knowing merciful God look into the future, see all the people who will be suffering in Hell for all eternity, and still create those people? Wouldn't it be more Merciful to have never created them?

 

 

Answer:

 

In my college days, A professor who taught the same class ( a Quantitative Analysis descipline) over and over for many years warned the class about pitfalls of not following his instructions.

 

The Professor while explaining a methodological way to solve a special problem reflected:

 

" I've taught this class for 20 years, and this special problem has always proven difficult for students to grasp and solve. Every year, I warn my students and tell them to stick with my method to solve the problem, because if they try to solve it any onther way, they will fail, unfortunately, every year on the average, five students fail by not following my method, not because they were not warned, but because it was their CHOICE to ignore the warning" he went on " I am sure that five students in this class who are listening to me now will fail, because of their choice"

 

The analogy here is about a human teacher who does not know what the future holds for his students, but from data of past twenty years he formed a knowledge base on which ha can base a prediction that holds water.

 

The key to the answer is therefore CHOICE, Allah gave us intellect to either obey or disobey, and he gave us the freedom of choice, and its utter justice that those who abide by rules are rewarded with goodness and those who commit crimes to be punished. However Allah's prior knowledge of our choices should not be reason for Allah to take away our valued freedom to choose to make our own decisions.

 

What the Atheist is suggesting is contradictory to his own desire for personal CHOICE of not following Allah's way, if Allah took that right away from him, he will be like a rock pepple on the beach, but we know that man has a purpose on earth and mission, which the Athiest fails to understand and hence his confusion. If we followed his warped logic, We would have all been Muslims, however many verses in Quraan clarify this fact. The Polytheists during Prophet Muhammad SAWS have used the same argument " Wa law shaa'a Allahu ma cabadnaahum" ( If Allah so willed, we would not have worshipped them (idols) ), here mankind is trying to transfer blame to Allah and insist on doing evil on earth as HIS CHOICE, then complain why Allah did not take that freedom away from him in the first place. This is mockery of reason, as he asking in other words, why did Allah gave me a mind? and a Choice? I would have been better off without them. Now, that is the exact wish of evil doers who end up in hell, the Quraan reccounts the unbeliever's future wish when they end up in hell, they say: " Leytanii kuntu turaabaa" meaning, " I wish I was sand"

 

The question that bounces back at the Athiest is this:

 

Do you want to be a human gifted and honored with intellect hence accountable to her/his actions? or do you want to be an animal or a rock pepple unaccountable for its action?

 

The moral of Islam's message:

 

If you can't take the heat of hell, stay out of trouble!

 

Fair enough?

 

 

Nur

[Khalaf]

Sh. Nur, of course as a believer in Allah Most Great and the Last Day the answer u gave makes prefect sense. But umm check dis they will say: no merciful God would let people make mistakes to begin with (freefill) that puts them in hellfire forever, since it would be more merciful to have never created them.

 

Their point is to say, Mercy and Justice can not co exist. Why would the answer to this question even matter, since we are already alive and breathing right now and surely we will die....nor did we create ourselves nor nothingness be the cause of our existence and the existance of this world? Nur I know several atheists and agonists at school and work.........their questions are very interesting and I think it is the way to find the truth to ask questions for those who are sincere, walaalhi this white agonist girl cried when I explained Islam to her may Allah guide them. Ie, they will say I don’t believe in God, I just believe in being a good person ect. Since there is no way like unto deenul Islam, its best to explain the religion the way nabi scw did to the doubters- the beauty of tawhid and most importantly for the Muslims to be distinct let the non-Muslims c Islam from us.

[Nur]

Again in times of confusion, we need to go back to the basics, the fundementals of Islam to get our vision right .

 

Reposting this dialogue to the front burner, please contribute, learn or teach.

 

 

Khalaf bro.

 

Justice is Mercy, can you imagine how life would be if criminals run our lives ( I a way the do now in Somalia)?

 

The problem with an Agnostic is that they use awarped logic that further confuses them. When they say that Justice can not coexisit with mercy, they are looking from the point of view of the criminal, not society that pays a hefty price and suffers more than the individual, if society is a body, and an organ is sick, we either cure or amputate, which is what Justice is made for, so society survives, but not the other way around, in Somalia, we have a situation in which uncle Bush and auntie Condi are having mercy for our criminal warlords who maimed and killed children for 16 years, and now the warlords found an ally who share them special Justice and Mercy principles, kill children, save warlords.

 

 

Nur

[Nur]

Khalf brother here is another view of the problem you have posed:

 

" Sh. Nur, of course as a believer in Allah Most Great and the Last Day the answer u gave makes prefect sense. But umm check dis they will say: no merciful God would let people make mistakes to begin with (freefill) that puts them in hellfire forever, since it would be more merciful to have never created them."

 

 

Answer:

 

Brother, humans have three requirements:

 

1. Freedom of Choice (Good or bad)

2. Justice

3. Mercy.

 

In That order.

 

The first item, freedom of choice is limited, because, we do nont have the choice to be created or not to be created, a Devine decree has decided that humans to be created to populate planet earth for a while. We also did not have the choice of our phyical attributes, sex, birth date, death date, choice or country o be born, nationality, Qabeel. Because if we had these choices, I am sure that many Nomads on this forum would have been a black American woman like Oprah who is so rich by coincidence. or may be another Black American woman like Condi Rice who so powerful, in few years she has caused the death of millions around the globe and she is not done yet.

 

But, as humans we have the choice of our actions, or in the case of the "internationl Community" inaction about the poor in Somalia dying wholesale under the American sponsored bloody Ethiopian invasion and occupation of Somalia.

 

 

2. Justice:

 

As slaves of Allah ( limited freedom of choice) we are responsible and accountable, both in this life and the next.

 

 

3. Mercy: When we fail, and we show remorse, like any criminal, our punishment is either forgiven, or reduced.

 

 

Nur

[Nur]

A Nomad Sister Warsan posed this aqeedah question:

 

 

"It's very confusing...and if our lives & actions from birth to death are already written & set...why are we being tested or punished for what we do?"

 

 

Warsan sis

 

Calaf is Somali analogue for Qadar in Arabic, it is one of the six pillars of iman, it comes in two flavors, Good and Bad.

 

If you take an internet Class with Proffessor Nur on Somalionline Open University, and pose this question to the Prof. He will explain as follows:

 

Miss Warsan, I have taught this class for five years, and explained many concepts to the best of my abilities, I have simplified complex concepts to make it a child play, but still a handful of my online students fail this class, not because i made them fail, but i can tell you who among my students is more likely to fail this course, and because its only five years, my prediction may not be that accurate, but its good enough for government work.

 

Now let us stretch this logic a lil further, say, you come back to this site as a grandmother some thrity years, and Prof Nur is still on Somaliaonline Islam boards, with residual experience of 35 years on likelyhood of Nomads passing the grade at the SOL Open Uni.

 

If you ask me again the same question, the Profs chances of accuracy increase.

 

Now, Allah SWT creates his creatures with a constant mix of intellectual, physiscal, spiritual capabilities, and against these capabilities he expects them to perform and deliver duties that are within their sphere of influence. ( Laa yukallifu Allahu nafsan illa wuscahaa) ( Allah does not demand from any soul to deliver more than its capacity)

 

Like the students analogy, Allah knows beforehand our choices and paths that we will take, and thus he records it in the Book of Qader, as the Book of Qadar is in a different domain of time-space than ours, the present, past and future in that book are continuuum with no breaks. ( The Quraan is a good example of a text treating the future as if its happening now)

 

So Qadar in other words is Allahs knowledge of our choices.

 

Allah also interferes at times, we call them Miracles.

 

Allah does not on one hand make you responsible for your actions, and on the other unjustly force you to do something that he will punish you for it (only the CIA does that), it beats the purpose of creation and Allah's attribute of JUSTICE, which in essnece is to test people's response level for Allahs call of unrivalled surrender to his will, willingly.

 

From Allah point of view, the FUTURE has already happened, its analogous to a movie that you have already seen, you pretty much know what is going to happen next, but that doesn't mean that you have forced the events and actors.

 

 

Nur

[Nur]

The Following Discussion is on the Aqeedah Principles of Tawheed al Haakimiyah, ( That Allah's Sovereign Law ( Shariah ) is The Only Legitimate Law In Allah's Sight. I post selections of the the discussion between me and Sister Naden Titled: "Islam and Democracy, Which one is More Modern?"

 

 

Naden sis

 

Sorry for not having time on my hands these days, I am overwhelmed with work.

 

You write:

 

"Nur, how did you come to explain shura as a consultation of best interpretation of the Devine Commandments? Verse 42:38 references shura in relation to the matters common to people. The consultation in this context is not about the divine commandments alone but all their worldly affairs also. These affairs could span the common good affecting a group that lives together in a geographical territory under their control. "

 

 

Walaalo

 

Allah SWT says in Quraan : "Innal Amra kulluh lillah" Meaning, judgement of all affairs that matters to people rightfully belongs to Allah SWT.

 

Based on above, the Sharia is composed of Revelations ( Quran and Sunnah), Qiyaas and Ijmaac. Which gives ownership of the legislation to Allah SWT, and makes man an executor of the law even if its his his best attempt to interpret what Allah would have legislated in light of precedents (Qiyas) or consensus ( Ijmaac).

 

 

Malika sis

 

you write:

 

 

"Dont you think,Islam and democracy have some principles in common,the respect for individual rights, liberty, equality, rejection of absolute power, limiting the role of state, and supremacy of the law?"

 

 

Answer:

 

Democracy means Demo ( People) and Cracy(Rule). Other attributes are not Democracy but ideals that existed way before Democracy exisited.

 

You write:

 

 

"It is just that after the influx of westerners in the lands of the Muslims they have been able to influence,changes in our juridistial systems hence the confusion...of what is democracy and how does it operate in an Islamic country without the secular influence.."

 

Answer:

 

Demcracy can not operate properly in a genuine Islamic country, the application of Democracy deinies the Sovreignty of God ( Allah) over His dominion, Democracy is the epitome of human rejection of God's authority and Sovereignty over their collective affairs. The confusion you see is when the system is rigged, imagine a cat walking on duck's feet?

 

 

Nur

 

 

Naden Walaalo,

 

You write:

 

" The verse (3:154, I presume) in its entirety does not refer to the common shura as you had discussed in your essay or sharia as you are now alluding"

 

 

Answer:

 

The verse in Surah Al Imran discussed a spectacular example of the connection between the requirement of following a devine command by way of His prophet in a death and life situation, on one hand and the input some of the companion wanted to have in such a situation which is more dire than any other social situation that can arise in a community, which were the decisive events of the Battle of Badr, they asked " do we have any say in this matter? " they added, " If we had a say, we would not have been killed here" Allah decreed, " O Muhammad tell them, The matter in its entirety belongs to Allah"

 

Amr in Quraanic Arabic language has the following meanings:

 

1. Issue, matter, agenda to be discussed,

2. Event, accident

3. Command, order, instruction.

 

The context of above verse in Surah Aal Cimraan encompasses all three meanings which is rare, how you may ask.

 

a. The events were driven by Allah, it was not their choice to begin with, ( Li yaqdiya Allahu AMRAN, Kaana Mafcuulaa), AMRAN here means EVENT, as a small number of believers dared to confront a larger army of Quraish, Allah says that even if they have planned " Tawaacdtum", to meet at a certain place and time, they would have differed.

 

b. The Issue was not the mere interception of Qureish's caravan, but it was a Devine prelude to the establishment of the Muslim State, an issue some of the companions did not buy into nor understood it totally, as they tried to interfere with a Devine instruction.

 

c. The Command was to follow the instruction of the Prophet SAWS that was revealed to him by Allah.

 

 

Now, is the above relevant in the Shura?

 

Wel, sis, you asked me :

 

"how did you come to explain shura as a consultation of best interpretation of the Devine Commandments? Verse 42:38 references shura in relation to the matters common to people"

 

For which I referred to the above verse as an example that all matters and issues in Islam are not left to a Muslim, the Sharia which means the "WAY" in Arabic, includes the guidlines of what is permitted and what is prohibited. When we discuss what is permitted, we are in fact following the Sharia ( the way of Allah) even if Allah did not speak about it explicitly or its an open issue ( Mubaax).

 

Now, let us shed some light on the origins of the Sharia.

 

Sharia or "The Way" and "Shaaric" which means the endorser of ways and means, Allah, by way of his revelations and prophets, and books, has a purpose.

 

1. Protection of Faith, so any discussion on matters of faith is legitimate if its constructive of the faith , not destructive, shuraa can not be justified to undo the faith that gave it the legitimacy.

 

2. Protection of Life, so any discussion on matters of life and death must be based on Sharia which is based on the usool al sharia. Control System: Sanctity of Life, Capital Punishment for abusers.

 

3. Protection of Property, so any discussion on matters that will affect or lead to loss of property or its unjust transfer to others must be based on the Sharia.

Control System: Sanctity of Ownership, Prohibition of Ribaa Usury, " Do not consume wealth in your community unjustly" , Punishment for abusers

 

4. Protection of the Mind, any substance that will render the mind to compromise its full capacity is thus against the Sharia.

Control System: Sanctity of the Mind, Prohibition of Alcohol and drugs. Punishment

 

5. Protection of the procreation, which regualtes relationship of the sexes.

Control System: Sanctity of procreation, Prohibition of Sex outside of marriage. Punishment for abusers.

 

 

With the above background, let us visit your question:

 

"How did you come to define shura as consultation of best interpretation of the Devine Commandments? "

 

I have shown that:

 

1. All of human activities that needs regualtion fall in one of the above categories, directly or implied.

 

2. That, Allah is the Sovereign in His Dominion, thus the Only rightful owner of what " Matters" in His Dominion as per the Verse " He is the God at heavens and He is ( also) God on Earth". which demarcates the absolute reach of His absolute authority and rule.

 

3. That (Shuraa) is the right way to realize Allah's wishes ( Sharia, the Way) which has priority over human wishes and desires aka ( Ahwaa) when they conflict.

 

Nur

 

 

Naden sis

 

You wrote:

 

"Consensus on the best interpretation of religious text/commandments as you have written in your initial essay and subsequent writings is NOT the definition of shura. That is too narrow of a scope. Such an interpretation is left to the religious class of society. It is a closed door process. That is the opposite of shura"

 

Answer:

 

Please read what I wrote once more critically:

 

 

"The role of a Muslim in the institution of Islam is a SUBJECT, A SLAVE who has to fulfil his Masters commandments. So in Islam, the power is NOT FOR THE PEOPLE. All Power is RESERVED FOR ALLAH ONLY, NOT for those competing to sharing power with him known as ANDAAD ( .......Innal Quwata lillahi Jamiican) The role of the slaves in this institution is consultation of best interpretation of the Devine Commandments, aka (Shuuraa)"

 

 

Sister:

 

Allah SWT says:

 

If you disagree on an issue (Shey-in) ( any issue), then (to solve) refer to Allah ( Quran) and His Messenger ( Prophet's teachings , Sunnah).

 

Hence Shuraa in Islam is the problem solving process in which we refer to the above guides for a solution for any matter.

 

Your perspective of discussing this topic is alien to Islam, you are separating issues to religious issues and public concern issues, while in Isalm, every aspect of A Muslims life is " Religious", while in the western worldview, there are two distinct aspects to a persons life, thus, the role of democracy in discussing issues common to people who have no shared religious values but have shared interest.

 

Infact, contrary to your assertion, my view is more broad and inclussive of all activities of a Muslim in Shuraa. Yours is the narrow interpretation of Shura, by confining Shura to only the high level scholars Fiqh issues.

 

Your difficulty in grasping the Islamic system of Shura as related to Democracy arises from your attempt to mold Islam in a western package, in Shuraa, regular Joe with no understanding or acceptance of supremacy of Sharia is not qualified to cast his opinion in Shuraa unlike Democracy which gives the right to cast vote to any citizen regardless of the judicial basis of their opinion. Because in Islam the Law ( Sharia) supersedes any Conusltation not in line with it, whereas in Democracy, the consultation supersedes any past Law.

 

In Islam, before we qualify for Shuraa on any issue or concern, we:

 

1. Unconditionally accept Allah's supremacy, his Sovreignty, his law ( Sharia) as the basis of all of our lives.

 

2. The Place of Quraan and Sunnah in the interpretation process,

 

3. Based on the above two, we begin to discuss ( Shuraa) any issue within those constraints.

 

Shuraa means consultation, sharia means the law or the way to live. So a Muslim is not free to have a consultative meeting that conflicts with the Sharia as Sharia is the broad ball park in which shuraa takes place.

 

Qiyaas and Ijmaac are again the fruit of Shuraa on clarification of applicability ambiguities in the Quran and Sunnah to a paticular situation.

 

 

Nur

 

 

Naden:

 

You write:

 

" Shura by definition, is a heavily man-influenced set of legislation through the influence of qiyaas and igmaac. "

 

Naden:

 

That Definition is erroneous on many counts:

 

1.Shuraa is not LEGISLATION, its the deliberation that can lead to interpret the moral of the Sharia law ( Maqaasidul Shariica) as applied to a particular issue at hand.

2. Shuraa is A Devine Initiated (Allah ordered His Messenger: Wa shaawirhum fil amr)

3. Shuraa is Heavily Devine influenced (Wa maa kaana li muninin wa laa miminatin idaa qadaa Allahu wa rasuuluhu amran an an yakuuna lahumul khiyaratu min amrihim".

4. Shuraa ( Shaaral Casalu) is Human Extracted procedure from Quraan and Sunnah (Honey), and when ambiguous, like a collection of data points in statsitics, the best-fit-line to the Sharia ( MAIN HIGHWAY) is sought and discussed, the opinions pertaining to this discussion are prioritised according to their proximaty to the STANDARD ( QURAN AND SUNNAH) and then the best opinion becomes a defacto SHARIA adding to the ever increasing body of Dynamic Islamic sharia law.

 

 

So let us build together a better Definition of Shuuraa than yours, since you seem to have fun with definitions and logical premises that lead to a reasonable conclusion.

 

 

Sharia in Arabic language is composed of three letters: Sheen, Raa, and Cayn. It has a single root, which illustrates something that is unfolding ahead of an observer.

 

A. From that root, the following Linguistic meanings are derived:

 

Verbs:

 

1. Sharaca Nur sharcan: meaning; Nur Drank water direct with mouth ( without cup).

 

2. Sharacat Naden Al Madrasa: meaning; Naden approached school.

 

3. Sharacat Naden taktub: meaning: She started writing.

 

4. Sharaca Nur al calama: Nur raised the banner.

 

5. Sharaca al muqaawilu al tariiqa: meaning, The contractor levelled and spread the road ahead.

 

Nouns:

 

1. Shaaric: means INITIATOR, SETTER OF AGENDA.

2. Shaaric: means MODEL of NEW METHOD ( SUNNAH).

3. Shaaric: Main Avenue of a Town.

4. Shaarica: Water Supply, continuous without disruption.

 

 

B. Legal Meanings:

 

1. Sharc: Clear WAY, METHOD OF DOING THINGS.

2. SHARC: All that Allah and His Messenger ORDAINED to be FOLLOWED.

3. SHAARIC: LAWMAKER ( SOVEREIGN), who delegated His Messenger to deliver the law in writing ( Quraan), sayings ( Hadeeth) action or implied approva.

4. Mashruuc: An Ordinance, An Action driven by a law.

 

 

Now let us Define Shuraa:

 

The orgin of Shuraa:

 

A. Language:

 

1. Shaara al casal: meaning, purified and extracted honey from comb.

2. Shirtul casala, ishtartuh: I got net of honey (minus wax) or got the honey after paying money.

3. Ashaara: Pointed out, showed something with finger, words or body language.

4. Istashaara: Seek counsel

5. Shuuraa/mushaawara/tashaawur: Consultation.

 

So Based on above analyses, Shuuraa means,

 

Defintion of Shuraa:

 

"Activity of Extrating the best feasible opinion among many competing opinions submitted by those who are competent by virtue of their specific knowledge to set controls for the upholding of the Moral of Sharia on a given subject".

 

I have previously shown that all matters of concern to a Muslim community falls within the sphere of Allah's Sovereignty, thus, they are under His dominion and hence Muslims are naturally expected to surrender to His Law (Sharia) willingly.

 

Which neccessitates that all issues discussed by a comunity are in line with the wishes of the lawmaker ( Shaaric), in the letter of the law, the Sunnah, and when ambiguous, Qiyas and Ijmaac, both in the moral of such law and method of application.

 

 

Now let us go back to what I have written

 

 

"First premise: Shura is Consultation.

 

This is true, based on the verse " Wa amruhum shuuraa beynahum" "matters of concern to them, (are disposed by way of ) Consultation"

 

Second Premise: "Sharia means the law or the way to live."

 

Allah SWT says in Quraan: "He hath ordained for you that DEEN ( CODE of LIFE) which He commended unto Noah, and that which We inspire in thee (Muhammad), and that which We commended unto Abraham and Moses and Jesus, saying: Establish the DEEN ( THE ONLY CODE OF LIFE ALLAH WISHES PEOPLE TO LIVE BY), and be not divided therein. Dreadful for the idolaters is that unto which thou callest them."

 

Allah also says in the same Suraa Shuuraa:

 

"Or have they partners (of Allah, a.k.a Secular Lawmakers) who have made lawful for them in DEEN (CODE OF LIFE) that which Allah allowed not ? And if it was not for a decisive DECREE (gone forth already), it would have been judged between them. Lo! for wrong-doers is a painful doom"

 

 

based on the above verses and definitions, my Conclusion is also true.

 

Conclusion: So a Muslim is not free to have a consultative meeting that conflicts with the Sharia as Sharia is the broad ball park shuraa takes place

 

 

Secondly you write:

 

"Your comment that a muslim is not free to have a consultative meeting at odds with Sharia, though that very Sharia is being developed by other muslims, is very strange."

 

 

Answer:

 

Walaalo, Let us agree that we are discussing Shuraa concept from an Islamic Perspective, not from the Athenian " COMMUNE" concept that influenced emergence of Democracy, because as I warned you before there lies your confusion. Because Democracy is the other side of Sovereignty which belongs to the people who have the right to legislate anything they see fit with majority of votes, while Shuraa is quite the opposite, it begins with acceptance of the Sovereignty of a Devine Law Maker, therefore it does not legislate, Shuraa is just the Devine inspired venue to get a consensus on any matter that causes difference of opinions on the Maqaasidul Shariica ( Moral of the Devine Law)

 

Shuraa in Islam is a deliberation, in which the OBJECTIVE is to reach CONSENSUS ON a MATTER OF CONCERN to A STAKEHOLDERS, with full awareness that there is no matter of real value to humans without a Devine directive ( Quraan and Sunnah) that serves as a broad outline for tackling any propblem.

 

These stakeholders are SUBJECTS of a SOVEREIGN, whose Revelation is the STANDARD GUIDELINE and thus SUBJECTS ARE NOT FREE to DEVISE NEW STAND-ALONE LAWS that CONFLICT with the MORAL or the LETTER of SHARIA LAW. Their role is to argue best interpretation of an AMBIGUOUS ordinance in the SHARIA to tackle a problem faced by the STAKEHOLDERS.

 

In Islam, the first thing we need to make a judgement on any issue is KNOWLEDGE, the more complex an issue the more knowledge is required, since it would be ( darbun minal junuun)( Insantity is trying to get different result by doing the same thing) to try to solve a problem with the exact set of knowledge/information that lead us to that situation in the first place.

 

The purpose of the Devine Revelations, on which we Muslims base our actions, is to satisfy Allah SWT, a.k.a (Cibaada) which is the objective our exisitence on planet earth. Our comfort in this life and the next is what satisfies Allah (...wa in tashkuruu Yardahu lakum), Allah does not want hardship for us, but expediency, haste and cutting corners can be tempting at times with unbearable price tag to pay, both in this life and next, and here is where the concept of Shuraa and Sharia play an important role to make sure that we adhere to the Sharia as close as possible, thus Shuuraa it is a DEVINE INFLUENCED DELIBERATION ( Two angels on our shoulders.

 

Shuraa is a deliberation activity, and like any activity, it has requirements.

 

1. Particpants in Shuraa must have done their homework, they should have a cerfication in the area of their expertise to offer an expert advice.

 

2. Participants pledge allegiance to Supremacy of the Sharia which is Allah's law, not a man made law, man's contribution being only its detailing, structuring, clarifying and getting it close to the Moral of the Devine Law Framework which we have discussed previously ( Protection of the Faith, Life, Property, Offspring, mind)

 

3. Participants base their opinion first on Quraan, secondly on Hadeeth, and then on Qiyaas, Ijtihaad and Ijmaac, each of these stages has requirements to be fulfilled.

 

4. Proofs to any argument in a Shuraa session can be one of four combinations.

 

A. First the SOURCE of Proof can be:

 

i. THUBUUT: AUTHENTICITY

ii.DALALAH: MEANING

 

B. Second, the meaning of Proof can be:

 

i. QADCI: EXACT PRECISE MEANING

ii. DHANNI: AMBIGUOUS/BASED ON GUESS WORK.

 

 

So any issue on the Shuraa table can be one of the above four outcome.

 

1. Qadciyu Thubuut, Qadciyu Dalaalah. ( Authentic Source, Single meaning)

2. Qadciyu Thubuut, Dhanniyu Dalaalah ( Authentic Source, Ambibuous meaning).

3. Dhanniyu Thubuut, Qadciyu Dalaalah (Ambiguous source, Single meaning).

4. Dhanniyu Thubuut Dhanniyu Dalaalah (Ambiguous Source, Ambiguous meaning).

 

Quraan and Hadeeth ( Saheeh category) are Genuine Sources, and when they have a single linguistic meaning, This is the primary sphere of the Sharia which has no room for discussion, followed by the second case which has a room for Shuraa, and the last two have no judicial significance at all.

 

 

Wa Allahu Aclam

 

 

Nur

 

 

Naden sis

 

The full paragraph of the Quote is:

 

"Your conclusion does not follow your 2 premises. Sharia, by definition, is a heavily man-influenced set of legislation through the influence of qiyaas and igmaac."

 

Answer:

 

Please clarify how I misquoted, I cant see it?

 

 

On your second point, we have no disagreement, I agree with you that there is a general framework and detail work for shuuraa which leaves a lot of room for interpretation, which in turn gave birth to the science of Fiqh as we know it today and the four schools of thought ( Madhaahib).

 

 

You write:

 

"My main disagreement remains to be your narrow definition of shura as a process operating within an interpretation of Quran and Sunnah in developing sharica."

 

 

Yaa ghaliya; it was reported that the Prophet SAWS said, "I have left for you two sources if you abide by them, you will never get lost again ( Like people of the book, Christians and Jews, who took freedom to follow conflicting human ideas, when clear Devine instruction was at hand, as a result we got lost just like they have lost the way)

The Two sources are Quraan and Sunnah.

 

You write:

 

" Shura is much broader than that, may not necessarily refer to the Quran & Sunnah, and is open to everyone in society and not just people who should have a cerfication in the area of their expertise to offer an expert advice, though I agree with you that they should do their homework"

 

 

Yaa Ghaaliya, Shuraa has many levels of application, the higher level of shuraa is Strategic, it sets vision and mission (Purpose for which we exisit), second level is Tactical, which translates the mission to actionable goals, third level is Operational, processes and procedures and the last level is Executive. Mixing between these levels spells confusion.

 

At the highest level, the Strategic level ( Maqaasidul Sharica), here is the equivalent of the Constitution, its similar to Constitutional Scholars in a Democracy, in Islam we need scholars well versed in Quraan and Sunnah ( our Constitution) to set the general scope of the Sharia, as it trickles down, more detailed requirements are debated in Shuuraa, the Tactical Scholars are those who can translate the broad direction of the strategies ( Maqaasidul Sharica) to current questions in theory, again they are expected to know two main issues, the current affairs that calls for the Shuraa and the output from the (Maqasidul Sharica) in the form of fatwas and supporting verses and hadeeths, the next level down is the Operational level, which bridges between the Strategic/Tactical and the Executive, their role is like the committee of ways and means, and their output is passed to the executive branch who discuss ( Shuraa)how to best execute the sharia on specific daily affairs of the public from traffic ligt, social issues to Business law.

 

And finally you can have a neigborhood shuraa, PTA (parent Teacher Association) sport commitee shuuraa, etc. which are equivalent to the last level (the executive level), in this last level, professionals are needed not Jurists, no need to know the higher level stuff, just accept to always work within the framework of the Maqasidul Sharia wich validates all actionable activities, examples of Suraa here for example are how to control crime, waste management and recycling, and domestic violence among many other issues in any community.

 

 

Yaa Ghaalya, The concept of Shuuraa as we know it was introduced by Islam, in the pages of the Quraan " Wa amruhum shuuraa beynahum"

 

As I have written before, the (ishkaal) confusion from your point of view is due to an imbedded perception of western christian origin that people lead two lives, as a result, they are categorised as: Religious people and lay people. After which Religious people are expected to follow religious procedures to resolve religious conflicts , while lay people are not bound by any religious rulings in leading their lives, be it economical, political or social. As I have said before, in a secular society, religious beliefs are personal, thus not accepted to govern the public life, while in Islam, Muslim community is governed by the Sharia law to reflect their collective surrender to their maker as well as their personal surender, hence the importance of the Suraa instrument to align dynamic legislations with the conservative revelations.

 

This problem ( Separation of Church and Satate) is rooted in the Roman domination of Christendom, when the King of Rome decreed that Gods dominion is the Church and Sundays, while the Roman king's dominion is all the rest.

 

In Islam, All Dominion belongs to Allah, not to Roman Kings, nor to Public Kings ( REPUBLIC), the Deen (State of surreder and acceptance of Allah's absolute Dominion) is not equal to RELIGION as in Judeo-Christanity context) Deen is not an isolated ritual we perform on a weekend, its an integral part of our life, every aspect of our lives is in surrender to Allah, willingly or unwillingly, thus, we are in constant state of worship even when we sleep or have intimacy with our spouse and anything in between.

 

To show where your "ishkaal" began let us re-read your past responses"

 

" This means that shura is limited to the religious class in most societies because who else is involved in understanding Maqaasidul Shariica or providing new legislation and fatwas to respond to modern concerns. Deferring to this class creates the high priests of Islam (a religion that does not recognize it)."

 

 

For which I replied:

 

" Yaa Ghaaliya, Shuraa has many levels of application, the higher level of shuraa is Strategic, it sets vision and mission (Purpose for which we exist), second level is Tactical, which translates the mission to actionable goals, third level is Operational, processes and procedures and the last level is Executive. Mixing between these levels spells confusion.

 

At the highest level, the Strategic level ( Maqaasidul Sharica), here is the equivalent of the Constitution, its similar to Constitutional Scholars in a Democracy, in Islam we need scholars well versed in Quraan and Sunnah ( our Constitution) to set the general scope of the Sharia, as it trickles down, more detailed requirements are debated in Shuuraa, the Tactical Scholars are those who can translate the broad direction of the strategies ( Maqaasidul Sharica) to current questions in theory, again they are expected to know two main issues, the current affairs that calls for the Shuraa and the output from the (Maqasidul Sharica) in the form of fatwas and supporting verses and hadeeths, the next level down is the Operational level, which bridges between the Strategic/Tactical and the Executive, their role is like the committee of ways and means, and their output is passed to the executive branch who discuss ( Shuraa)how to best execute the sharia on specific daily affairs of the public from traffic ligt, social issues to Business law.

 

And finally you can have a neigborhood shuraa, PTA (parent Teacher Association) sport commitee shuuraa, etc. which are equivalent to the last level (the executive level), in this last level, professionals are needed not Jurists, no need to know the higher level stuff, just accept to always work within the framework of the Maqasidul Sharia wich validates all actionable activities, examples of Suraa here for example are how to control crime, waste management and recycling, and domestic violence among many other issues in any community. "

 

 

Moral of the write up:

 

There is no emerging matter of concern to Muslims that falls outside of shuraa, and shuraa is a devine mandated instrument to resolve opposing viewpoints on issues that arise in a Muslim community.

 

 

Nur

[Nur]

Johny boy

 

 

Some of your responses were on the mechanics of the discussion like the Scottsman fallacy for which you have reminded me what I have forgotten (In my philosophy class, years ago) " TRUE SCOTSMAN" but again, the ball was on your court to show were did I uses such logic. You have not shown were I used such a statement after your lengthy discourse, so let us leave it at there, its not worth more sweat, so we can get into the real issues of this dialogue about Islam and Democracy, on which your poistion is that they are not comparable, rather, you suggest Theocracy and Democracy, so let us stay on this track as much as possible.

 

You write:

 

"To answer your fantastic question of

Who is in greater ERROR then, someone who follows a GOD, or someone who claims to Be GOD?

i'd say someone who claims to Be GOD is in greater ERROR, but wait a minute ,

does people who live under Democracies claim to BE GOD? exactly my thoughts .

Could demanding a little more cincerity regarding this be much to ask?

 

 

Johnny Bro.

 

I am glad you asked, and this is precisely what I expected you to question.

 

You see saaxib, we have a system called Islam, which we both know gives Sovereignty to Allah, and by virtue of that Sovereignty, Allah reserves the right to pass laws for His slaves.

 

In Medieval Europe, the Church ( Found on concepts that are pagan in nature plus some remnants of the old testament ) which initially ceded power to Pagan Roman Kings, just to reclaim it back later in the form of established Churches like the Catholic Church and the Kings who strengthend their Power by claiming to represent the Devine by way of the Pope who ordained them, the Public had to follow and be loyal to the King if they wanted salvation, hence the birth of what you call THEOCRACY in Medieval Europe. Which does not apply to the emergence of ISLAM.

 

Now, many Principalities and Kingdoms in Europe claimed Sovereignty, and to make it short, the French Revolution took away that Sovereignty and gave it to the people, so the public under Democracy become THE Sovereign. RE ( means KING) PUBLIC ( means PEOPLE) so people are the SOVERIGN KINGS collectively that is.

 

So what is Sovereignty:

 

In this discussion my goal is to answer your question, so dont lose sight if I take a long winding road, at the end, I want to show that Democracy is a new form of religion, and those who adhere to it claim to be members of multiple Gods, Dieties, on one hand and its slaves at the other.

 

To show this, I will first explain Sovereignty, which is the other face of Democracy that legitimizes its power. I will then Explain what Diety means from Islamic perespective and the Arabic language ( Ilaah) and then examine if my claim was a far fetched or reasonable.

 

 

SOVEREIGNTY"

 

Sovereignty is defined as "supreme authority within a territory"

 

Its attributes/qualities:

 

1. Authority with Absolute Power ( No other power is greater than it)

2. Self dependent Authority, not by virtue of others

3. Irresistible Authority whose wishes must be obeyed by force.

4. Authority whose power controls its Domain.

 

Some of the attributes of Sovereignty:

 

1.( Absoluteness), Immune to any law, above law, no one escapes its law.

 

2. Supremacy, no other authority is higher than it.

 

3. Unity, the only authority to reckon with.

 

4. Originality, its orginal in its existence, has not borrowed its exisitence from another Sovereign, nor is continuation of another.

 

5. Non Transferable Authority, no one can take it away, it will never become legitimate if anyone else claims it.

 

6. An Authority that is always right, since it sets the criteria of what is right and what is wrong.

 

 

Now what is Deity is Islam:?

 

Allah in Surah Ikhlas desribed Himself as:

 

1. SINGULAR ( AXAD), single

2. SAMAD , Everything Absolutely depend on Him, He Absolutely Depends on Himself ALONE.

 

SAMAD has the Follwing Variations:

 

3. PROVIDER OF PROTECTION

4. RESCUER ( in times of distress)

5. Highest authority, no one scapes from His Jurisdiction and Sovreighnty.

6. Leadership. ( ZACIIM UL QOWM)

7. Anything one follows, even desires are called ilaah in Quraan.

 

Thus SOVEREGNTY aka (SAMAD) is a Devine trait and those who excercise it unwittingly claim Deity like Pharoah of Egypt.

 

So, Sovereignty and Democracy are two faces of the same coin, Sovereignty being the legal face while Democracy is the political face.

 

So following Democracy is following someone who claims to be a GOD. While following Allah is following the TRUE GOD.

 

Allah teaches us to say to people of the Book ( Jews and Christians who adopted polytheism : "let us strive to agree to converge to a common ground : That we do not worship other than Allah in any form, that we do not make associate with him other Sovereigns, and further that some of us should not take others for Lords (vested with Sovereignty)." If they turn away, then say: Be witness that we are MUSLIMS, (those who have willingly surrerndered to Allah's sovereignty)"

 

Therefore man should not worhsip man, by giving im a Devine Character, instead man should follow His creator, because a " A problem is not solved at the level it was created" Albert Einstein.

 

 

You write:

 

"The obvious problem that fails theocracy and all you advocate for here is since your merciful God "Allah", for a reason or another does not or cant come down to earth and lead those he chooses to the right path and lead those he dislikes to the helfire, he must be represented by human beeings like you and me and that contradics the credibility of such almighty."

 

 

Johnny saxib.

 

You are 1430 years late on this suggestion, Qureish the tribe that rejected Islam before you had the same suggestion, but they are no longer here, and Islam is here and kicking ( The Undisputed Fastest Growing Faith On Planet Earth).

 

Here is the verse Allah SWT is narrating some of Qureish's requests:

 

"Or that you make the heaven fall upon us in pieces as you claimed, or that you bring God and the Angels before us."

 

Nur